Financial Accountant

Work Setup: Hybrid (2x a week onsite - except closing week)

Location: Makati, Metro Manila, Philippines

Summary:

The Financial Accountant will specialize in General Accounting and will be responsible for closing the books for the assigned company codes. This includes posting journal entries, reconciling accounts, conducting month-end closing activities, and managing statutory filings for property tax and unclaimed funds. The role also involves financial statement analysis, providing audit support, and handling all general accounting responsibilities unrelated to Accounts Receivable and Accounts Payable. The Financial Accountant is expected to perform based on the key result area of the process and meet/exceed metrics set based on the Key Performance Indicator of the process.
 

Major Duties/Responsibilities:

General Accounting and Month-End Closing (40%)

The Financial Accountant is responsible for closing the Hershey books of accounts in compliance with US GAAP and following the Hershey closing calendar. This role entails ensuring the accuracy, timeliness, completeness, and proper approval of all transactions involved in the closing process, in compliance with the Journal Entry Policy.

General accounting and month-end closing activities include:

• Treasury Accounting
  • Cash clearing – Intercompany payments, Bank Fees, Royalty Payments, Returned Funds, Payroll, Tax Payment, Foreign Exchange Clearing
  • Bank Deposits
  • Bank reconciliations
• Stock Options
  • Compute share Tie Outs
  • Weighted Avg. Shares/Options Journal Entry
  • Dividend Accrual and Payment Entries
  • Class B Reconciliation to Compute share
• Property Tax amortization and true-up
• Month-end entries, accruals, prepayment amortization, and adjustments
• Key Account Reconciliation

Statutory Filings for Property Tax and Unclaimed Funds (20%)

Responsibilities include:

• Property Tax Filing Activities:
  • Prepare annual budgets related to property tax obligations
  • Process and ensure timely payment of property tax invoices
  • Handle property tax refund processing in compliance with applicable regulations

• Unclaimed Funds Filing Activities:
  • Prepare and send due diligence letters to payees as required
  • Track and manage returned due diligence letters
  • Coordinate remittance of unclaimed funds to the appropriate state authorities
  • Process check reissuance for previously unclaimed funds
  • Review and verify unclaimed property listings from the Pennsylvania State Government

Account Analysis and Issues Resolution (15%)

The Financial Accountant is responsible for the thorough and timely preparation and certification of accounts using the Hershey system, specifically the Blackline System. This role involves reviewing and reconciling balance sheet accounts according to the Balance Sheet Policy. The Staff Financial Accountant must identify issues, coordinate with account owners, analyze root causes, and determine appropriate steps to resolve those issues. Additionally, the Staff Financial Accountant is expected to collaborate closely with internal business partners, providing support and analysis to address their accounting-related concerns.

Audit Support  (15%)

The Financial Accountant is responsible for preparing and submitting documents required for both internal and external audits of Hershey's financial records and processes. Along with the RTR Manager, the accountant is also tasked with promptly communicating and resolving any issues identified during these audits.

Others: (10%)

KPI Tracking and Reporting: The Financial Accountant is responsible for defining relevant KPIs for the General Accounting processes. Apart from defining measures, the accountant is responsible for timely updates, reporting to customers, identifying and resolving issues that will lead to the improvement of KPIs. 
Record Retention: The Financial Accountant is responsible for the timely filing of supporting documents for journal entries, bank reconciliations, account analysis, and other accounting schedules. 
Other Adhoc: Other related ad hoc roles may be assigned to the Staff Financial Accountant with alignment to the Record to Report Manager of Hershey Global Business Services Manila.

Minimum knowledge, skills and abilities required to successfully perform major duties/responsibilities:

Knowledge
• BS Accountancy, or its equivalent 
• Certified Public Accountant 
• Proficient understanding of US GAAP and local GAAP 
• Basic knowledge of SAP 
• Knowledge in Microsoft Office (Excel, Powerpoint, Sharepoint) 

Soft Skills
• Strong Oral and Written Communication Skills 
• Good Interpersonal Communication Skills, 
• Collaboration Skills 
• Attention to Details 
• Strong Analytical and Problem-Solving Skills 
• Works with minimum supervision 
• Proactive 
• Project Management Skills and ability to prioritize

Behavior/Attitude 

• Customer-focused and Results Oriented. Understands issues from the customers’ perspective; considers the impact of decisions, processes, services on the customer; demonstrates passion for providing excellent customer service; treats customers with respect and care and uses a variety of approaches to identify customer needs; conveys a sense of urgency to get things done; ensures that there are necessary resources available for resolution of  escalated customer issues; monitors the quality resolution of customer issues.
• Problem Solving. Detail-oriented; uses rigorous logic and methods to solve difficult problems with effective solutions; effectively researches and probes all sources for answers; can see/recognize hidden problems and look beyond the obvious.

Minimum Education and Experience Requirements:

Education: Bachelor’s Degree required, in Accountancy or its equivalent 

Experience:

• Must have at least 3 years of experience in end-to-end General Accounting Process
• Certified Public Accountant (CPA) candidates are preferred
• Must be proficient in using SAP
• Must have advanced Excel Skill
• Must be highly adaptable to changes
• Candidates with Audit experience is preferred
• Amenable to a shifting schedule of mid-shift (3pm to 12mn) and night shift (8pm to 5am) during closing week